IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, helped launch an insurance program led by Activa International Insurance Ghana (AIIG) that seeks to increase insurance coverage among women and women in business in Ghana to protect them from financial risks and provide them better control over their assets.

Under the Activ’Lady program, IFC and AIIG, a member of the Globus Network, will raise awareness among women, specifically entrepreneurs, about the benefits of insurance to help protect them against unforeseen shocks in life or in their business operations. The program, which aims to benefit 2 million women by 2022, will also help women access financial and legal services to expand their businesses.

“As a leading provider of non-life insurance in Ghana, AIIG realizes that women are the lifeline of the Ghanaian economy,” said Solomon Lartey, Managing Director of AIIG. “Through the Activ’Lady program, AIIG aims to improve the lives of women in Ghana regardless of their social background or life stage by providing solutions that will empower them as entrepreneurs, traders, and professionals.”

Marieme Esther Dassanou, Global Women’s Insurance Program Lead of IFC’s Gender Business Group, said, “We know Ghanaian women are entrepreneurial; however, many of them lack the insurance coverage they need to protect and expand their businesses. This partnership will help make Ghanaian women entrepreneurs more resilient and their businesses more sustainable.”

An IFC-led study, SheforShield, found that the insurance industry can earn up to $1.7 trillion globally by 2030 if they focus on women alone, with 50 percent of this opportunity coming from emerging markets such as Ghana. In 2018, a study led by IFC and AIIG found most Ghanaian women lacked awareness about insurance or what non-life insurers cover.  

AIIG, which recently recruited about 50 agents—the majority of whom are women—also launched a separate program to improve the agents’ career opportunities.

The insurance initiative in Ghana is partly funded by the World Bank Group-hosted Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi), which invests in programs and projects that help unlock financing to address barriers facing women entrepreneurs.

Since 2016, IFC has been working with insurers across emerging markets to develop specific approaches to address the needs of women at various stages of their lives while creating income-generating opportunities for women as insurance employees, advisors, and distributors.

IFC has established similar insurance partnerships with insurers in Nigeria and in the Philippines.

About IFC        
IFC—a sister organization of the World Bank and member of the World Bank Group—is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work with more than 2,000 businesses worldwide, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in the toughest areas of the world. In fiscal year 2018, we delivered more than $23 billion in long-term financing for developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

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About Activa        
Activa International Insurance Company Limited is rated in the A category by Messrs Global Credit Rating (GCR). The Company was adjudged Insurance Company of the year 2018 by the Ghana Business Awards and also by the Ghana Accountancy and Finance Awards after thorough reviews of its financials and other activities within the years 2017 and 2018. AIIG was also adjudged insurance company of the year 2017 and 2018 consecutively, by the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG) at its 2018 awards ceremony in Accra among other prestigious awards.

Activa provides world class insurance services in over 48 out of the 54 African countries through its Globus Network.

The company grew its Gross Premium by 20% in 2018; at a time when the entire industry grew by 3.4% making it the 6th largest insurance company on the market out of 29 non-life companies. It grew profit by 47% from Ghs4.8 million in 2017 to Ghs7.1million in 2018. The company grew its Gross Premium by 35% in 2017.

The company as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives has presented Medical Equipment to the Children’s Unit of the Korlebu Teaching Hospital, Sponsored and supported activities of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), SME Ghana (SMEGA Awards) and the Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAGG), among others.

Activa is the foremost insurer of Corporate Ghana and the preferred partner and representative of some of the world’s largest and best insurance groups e.g. Chubb, Zurich, IF etc.